The critical path is a term used in project management to refer to the sequence of tasks that must be completed on time for a project to be finished on time. It is the longest path in a project, which means that if any of the tasks on this path are delayed or take longer than expected, the entire project will be delayed.

Create Dependencies

When creating a task in the scheduler, in the Dependencies tab you can indicate the tasks that have an impact on the task being created as well as the tasks that are impacted by it. Dependencies will also be used to determine the critical path, so it is recommended to create dependencies for all tasks in order to have an end-to-end critical path. The creation of dependencies is also required to have a functional Auto Schedule button.

Prerequisite

• There are tasks created in the scheduler

Steps

1. Select whether the dependency is at the beginning (upstream) or the end (downstream) of this task
2. Indicate the number of days to be considered
   • Note: unavailable days in the calendar of the impacted task will be considered in the calculation of the number of days for all downstream tasks. For tasks with an upstream impact, the unavailability calendar of the task being modified will be considered.
3. Select when the impacting task starts or ends
4. Select the task that has an impact
5. Click on the + sign to add other impacting tasks
6. Repeat the same operations for the tasks impacted by this task
7. Click Save when completed

You can also access a task at any time from the Diagram or List to add, modify or delete dependencies:

1. Double-click on the task for which you need to manage dependencies or click on the stylus at the beginning of the line

2.  Click on the Dependencies tab

3. Add or modify dependencies as described in steps 1 through 6 of the Create Dependencies section above

Critical Path

Prerequisites

• Scheduler tasks have been created
• Dependencies between scheduler tasks have been added

It is recommended to have dependencies for all tasks in order to have an end-to-end critical path.

Steps

1. On the Scheduler page, select the Diagram view
2. Select the period of the scheduler you want to see displayed
3. Double-click on the timeline row to display the tasks and subtasks
4. If necessary, click on the arrows in front of the parent tasks to display the subtask
5. In the Display menu, select Critical Path